Wicked: The Second Generation
by capriblue
Summary: Postmusical. Glinda and Elphaba's daughters meet, not knowing each other's family history, and Boq tries to take over the world.
1. Morning in Oz

It was a beautiful morning in the Emerald City. Holly Upland woke up in her palace home, yawned and stretched her arms, and stepped out of bed into her blue bedroom slippers. She walked slowly in her pajama tank and shorts down the curving staircase connecting the loft and the main bedroom. Holly flipped her curly blonde hair over her shoulder and sleepily stepped over to what seemed like an ordinary closet. But upon opening, it revealed to be a walk-in closet the size of a small house. Clothes lining the walls were color and type organized. On the north wall, drawers from top to bottom were filled with accessories. A small couch and two armchairs occupied the center of the "closet".

Holly walked over to the white section, choosing a flouncy skirt with flower designs inset on the side and a pink tank with rhinestones at the top. In her mother's age, Holly would have worn a bright pink dress to school, but times had changed. What was considered casual wear then now was classified as formal. Holly grimaced at the thought of wearing a dress to school. She loved them, but only for special occasions. Holly walked over to the wall of drawers on the south wall of her closet and opened the eighth one down in the second row, pulling out a white gold and diamond necklace- an eleventh birthday present from her mother. She was fifteen now, but she still loved it. After finishing with a matching bracelet and dangle earrings, Holly slipped on her favorite pink heels and headed to the adjoining room to do her hair and make-up.

Faye Tiggular was being shaken awake by her eleven-year-old sister, Nessarose, named so after her aunt. "Get up! You're already late! It's your first day at public school and you have to make a horrendible impression! Get _up!_" Nessa did a quick spell which doused oil on Faye's face. For anyone else, she would have done the spell for water, but Faye took after her mother, and was allergic to it. Oil had the same effect anyway, and Faye came up sputtering.

"Couldn't you have given me five more minutes?" She asked, wiping her face.

"Liir's already up," was all Nessarose said, but it was enough. Liir was Faye's twin brother, and he _never_ got up before her. Sleep and food were his two favorite things, typical for a fifteen-year-old.

"Man, I must be _really _late," Faye muttered to herself as she shooed Nessa out of her bedroom. She changed into a long black skirt and tank top with a jacket over it, even though it was extremely hot outside. On her way out the door she grabbed the silver locket her mother had given her, with a picture of her parents on each side. It was interesting to look at because it was taken in their college days, before her father had been transformed into a scarecrow. It was Faye's most valuable possession; she wore it every day.

When she reached the kitchen of their dark castle of Kiamo Ko, she found her brother and Nessa eating breakfast, and her father reading the paper. Faye's mother was unsuccessfully explaining to five-year-old Glinda that she would _have _to eat Jolly-O's because Liir had eaten the remaining Chocolate Poofs. Ten minutes later, Faye and Liir had collected their school things and were standing outside the castle with the family broom.

"Remember," Elphaba, their mother, was explaining to them, "Ride the broom to the outskirts of the Emerald City. Hide it in a bush, and walk the remainder of the way. Go swiftly, or you'll be late. She kissed them goodbye and watched as they flew off into the early morning sunrise.

"Oh, I hope they're okay," she said to her husband, Fiyero.

"They'll be fine. I don't see why you're worried so much. They won't slip up."

"Yes, but if they do, someone could find out who we are. We're endangering our lives, Fiyero! Oh, I never should have sent them to public school! Nessa's going to be homeschooled, they should have set an example for her."

"Nessa's green." Fiyero pointed out.

"Yes, well, like mother, like daughter!"

"And don't you think this is good for them? They get to be normal for once."

"Yes, but Fiyero, they're _not _normal. None of us are."

Their conversation was interrupted by Glinda, running into the room in hysterics. Apparently, she had spit her Jolly-O's out all over Chistery, the Tiggular family servant, and he had gone crazy, threatening her with a mop. It is never a good idea, angering a flying monkey. Elphaba had Glinda go apologize to Chistery, but the little girl stuck her tongue out at him when his back was turned.

Nessarose ran into the kitchen. "Mother, you better come quick. The cabbages are fighting with the carrots again."


	2. Orange Brick High

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Wicked, that belongs to Gregory Maguire, Winnie Holzman, and Stephen Schwartz.

The tenth graders, being new to the high school, were being given an orientation in the auditorium. Faye and Liir slipped into the back.

"Good morning new students. I am Professor Dunder, headmaster here at Orange Brick High, where students from both Yellow and Red Brick roads can come together. Every student is treated equally here, and I'm sure you will enjoy your three years at OB. Now, before we begin, I would like to introduce you to Miss Holly Upland. Holly, if you'd please stand up." She did so, as everyone applauded. Everyone that is, except for Faye.

"What's so special about _her_?" She asked her brother, who was applauding as loudly as everyone else.

"Shut up!" someone said.

"She's only the supreme ruler of all Oz's daughter!" another said. Faye shot them a glance that made them shiver and turn around.

"As you know," Professor Dunder continued, "Holly is the daughter of Lady Glinda, the current ruler of our dear Oz. Her father is Prince Eric of Winkie Land, and-" He was cut short by a loud applause and shouting from some current residents of Winkie Land. "Quiet down now, students, quiet down." He cleared his throat. "We are so proud to have Miss Upland here, and I'm sure that you all will treat her with the respect and consideration she deserves."

Faye snorted and rolled her eyes. "So much for 'every student is treated equally' she muttered under her breath.

"Let's hear it for Miss Upland!" Holly was given a standing ovation as she curtsied and sat down.

Unfortunately, the orientation was not the last Faye saw of Holly. Not by a long shot.

"Like oh, my gosh!" Holly squealed. "Isn't it like, so totally awesome that we have all our classes together?" They had also ended up becoming locker parents, how, Faye wasn't quite sure.

"Uh-huh, yeah." Faye mumbled.

"What've we got next? Oh, Home Ec! That's taught by Shen-Shen, she used to be a good friend of my mom's at Shiz."

Faye was tired of hearing Holly ramble on about her wonderful mother, but something about this sentence made her stop and think. "What did you say?"

"Uh, Shen-Shen is our teacher?"

"No, after that."

"She and my mom went to school together?"

"At Shiz?"

"Yeah…" Holly said, slowly. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing." Faye said quickly.

"What is it? Please tell me!" Faye decided she better say _something_, or Holly was going to be pestering her for the rest of the day in that whiny, high-pitched voice of hers.

"My parents went there, that's all."

"Oh, maybe my mom knew them!"

"It's a fairly large university. I doubt it."

"What's your last name?" Holly inquired. "Thrigg? I'll ask. Now come on, we're going to be late for class!" And to Faye's utter dismay, she began pulling her down the hallway.

"Good afternoon students. I am Professor Shen-Shen. This is my first time teaching at OB, and I will be your Home Ec teacher for this year." She waved at Holly and Holly waved back, then flipped her hair with her head.

Thirty minutes later, five people had stabbed themselves with needles, and the room was evacuated due to the large amount of smoke after Shen-Shen's attempt at making crème brulée.

"So, are you coming to the dance?" Holly asked Faye at lunch. She had saved her a seat. Faye couldn't see how this was possible. People were crowding all around Holly. Students were sitting under the table just to say that they had sat near her at lunch.

"Dance? Uh, no I don't do dances." Faye answered.

"But you have to come! It's the back-to-school dance! They only have one a year!"

"I never would have guessed." Faye mumbled. "I don't have anything purple to wear anyway." Everyone attending to the dance could only get in if they were wearing purple, except for Holly, who was going to be 'a vision in white'.

"Yeah, you do." Liir was pushing through a crowd of people to find Faye. "What about that purple velvet dress Mom and Dad bought you last Christmas?"

"Oh that will be perfect!" Holly did a double take. "Who are you?"

Faye shot him a 'thanks-a-lot-loser' look and then said, "That's my twin brother, Liir. I'm sorry I have to leave, but we always sit together, and there doesn't seem to be anymore room at this table." Faye got up to leave, but Holly motioned her to sit back down.

"He's cute- he can stay. You-" Holly pointed to a red-haired nerdy girl sitting beside her. "Move, he's sitting here." The girl ran off to her friends at another table to tell them that Holly Upland actually spoke to her!

"Umm, thanks." Liir said as he sat down.

"Oh, you're welcome. By the way, do you want to be my date to the dance on Wednesday?"

Liir was shocked. "You want _me_ to go to the dance with you? I'd have thought someone would have asked you already."

"They have." Holly tilted her head up and appeared to be counting on her fingers. "One hundred twenty eight to be exact." Liir's eyes widened and his jaw dropped open. "I know. It's not much, is it? But it's only lunch," she continued. "A lot more people will have asked by the end of the day but I'll _finally_ be able to tell them I already have a date." Liir shot Faye a triumphant look, which she returned with narrowed eyes.

"Wear a white corsage. It'll match my dress." Holly smiled, showing off her perfectly white teeth. "Aren't you lucky- you get to have a white one while every other boy has to have a purple. Oh, and you do have a purple suit don't you? You have to wear one to get in."

_Purple suit?_ Liir wondered. Who actually _does_ have a purple suit? "Umm, sure. Where is the dance located, anyway?"

"That would be the Ozdust Ballroom."

"Sounds perfect," Faye muttered under her breath at the frilliness of the name.

Holly flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked out of the lunch room, her wannabe crowd following.


	3. The Ozdust

"How was school?" Elphaba asked the traditional question as Faye and Liir walked in the door.

"Fine. It was fine," Faye answered, and went into the kitchen.

"Great!" said Liir. "There's this really cool dance on Wednesday and the most popular girl in school asked me to go with her."

"That's my boy!" Fiyero told Liir as he walked into the foyer.

"I'm glad you and Faye are fitting in well," Elphaba smiled. "But just don't get too involved in a relationship, Liir, our family has to be careful. With my luck, that girl's family will be the biggest Wicked Witch haters in all of Oz."

"Don't worry Mom, it's nothing serious, just a dance. Oh, yeah, and Dad- I'm going to need a purple suit."

"How was your first day of high school?" Glinda asked her daughter Holly.

"Great! I met this girl named Faye and she's pretty cool. I think we're going to end up being good friends."

"That's wonderful, honey. Now, I'd love to stay and talk but I have a diplomatic meeting with the ruler of Quadling Country. See you at dinner! Kisses." Holly and her mom made kissy noises on each side of each other's faces.

"Biq!" Lady Glinda yelled. "We're going to be late. Come on!" Biq, or rather, Boq, his true name, was the royal advisor to Lady Glinda. She hated him. Unfortunately, he was elected by the citizens of Oz, so there was nothing she could do until his term ran out.

Boq was very unusual. He had been turned into a tin man awhile back by the Wicked Witch of the West. That was when they had all gone to college together- Glinda, Fiyero, Elphaba, Nessarose, and Boq. It was a very confusing story, but it went something like this.

Glinda and Fiyero were engaged to be married, but Fiyero ran off with Elphaba, and now both of them were assumed to be dead. Nessarose loved Boq, but he didn't love her back, and Nessa had died in an accident. Boq had always liked Glinda, but she loathed him. But they were the only ones left of the five now. Glinda was constantly avoiding him, and reminding him of the fact that she was already married. Boq hated being a tin man and he would do anything to get revenge on the one who caused it. Too bad she had been melted.

"Hey Faye!" Liir yelled down the hall, arranging his white corsage, and laughing to himself because he made a rhyme. "We have to go now!" It was the night of the dance, and Liir was looking forward to an evening with Holly.

"Where?" Faye shouted back, lying on her bed deeply engrossed in a book. Her mother lent her it, _Famous Witches of the Twentieth Century._ The Witch of the West had been mentioned twelve times already, and Faye was only on chapter three.

"Uh, the dance!" Liir said, opening her bedroom door and scowling at her appearance. "What are you thinking? We have to leave and you're not even dressed yet!"

"Of course I am! What, you think I like going around naked or something?"

"You know what I mean."

"I do?" Faye gave him an innocent smile.

"Mom!" Liir shouted, facing downstairs. "This isn't fair! Can't I go to the dance without her? She's going to make me late!"

Elphaba came up the steps. "I already told you. You two have to stick together for these kinds of things. If you're like your father, which, heaven help me, you are, who knows what kind of trouble you'll get into."

"But she's not even dressed yet!"

"Of course she is! You think she likes going around naked or something?"

"That's what I told him!" Faye commented.

"Dad, they're driving me crazy!" Liir yelled down the steps.

His father appeared at the foot of the stairway. "What's going on up there, honey?"

"Oh, nothing." Elphaba replied. "Faye and Liir are just having a little argument. They'll be down in a minute."

"I'm not going," Faye insisted. "And that's final."

Five minutes later, Faye and Liir were flying toward the Ozdust. Elphaba had threatened to take away Faye's sorcery temporarily, so after that Faye was glad to go.

"Thanks a lot," Liir said sarcastically to Faye. "We're making Holly wait. Who _knows_ what the school will think of us now. She probably already found another date."

"Oh, I wouldn't be worried if I were you. I'm sure the princess will be fashionably late." Faye retorted.

Surprisingly, she wasn't. Holly was inside talking to some friends when Faye and Liir walked in.

"Where have you been?" She squealed. "Oh well, no matter. Let's dance!" She and Liir twirled away to the tune of _Dancing through Life, _a good oldies song. Faye was left standing with a bunch of Holly's friends.

"So…" A short blonde one said. Actually, they were all blonde, and apparently only two were naturals from what Faye could tell. _Weird. _Faye thought. _It looks like they all copied Holly. They must have _no _individuality. Oh, I guess I better say something. They're all staring at me._

"Uh, nice, uh, bracelet…thingy," Faye said to the girl. Faye actually meant it; the bracelet was silver with rubies. It was the only unique style she could find. The other girls looked like clones of each other with diamond bracelets.

"Thanks! I love your locket. Where'd you get it?" The girl asked.

"My mom gave it to me."

"Can I look inside?"

"NO!" All the girls backed away. "I mean, uh, I haven't put any pictures in yet. Uh, will you excuse me for a minute? I have to go uh, fix my make-up." The girls gave her fake smiles, but as soon as Faye looked away, formed a huddle and started whispering.

Faye started toward the refreshments table at the other end of the ballroom. That was a close one. No one could see her parents' pictures or they might recognize them. Especially since most of pictures available of the Wicked Witch were photos of her college days, one of which was in Faye's locket. She glanced around for Liir. He wasn't hard to spot, seeing as he was dancing with the only person dressed in white in a sea of purple. He and Holly seemed to be happy, so she returned to drinking her punch beside the rest of the unpopular girls who didn't have dates.

"Wanna dance?" Faye turned around. The person who had just spoken to her was an _extremely_ good-looking guy.

"Sure," she said, and they made their way to the dance floor.

_This is my chance, _Faye thought. _Everyone's going to think I'm so cool because I know this really neat dance my mom showed me. _She started dancing erratically, as strangely as possible. Her arms and legs were going everywhere. The boy that had asked her to dance backed up and started dancing with another girl, not wanting to be associated with Faye.

Holly had her back to Faye, but Liir saw her. "Oh, no," he said.

"What?" Holly asked.

"She's doing the Elphie."

Holly turned around and her hand flew to her open mouth when she saw Faye. "I've got to do something!" She turned to Liir. "Excuse me just a sec." He just nodded.

Holly made her way over to Faye. "Hey everyone!" she shouted. "This is a cool new dance that _everybody _who's _anybody_ is doing. It's the new style this year!" Holly starting dancing just as terribly, which made everyone believe her. If Holly Upland was doing something, it _must_ be cool.


	4. There's No Place Like Home

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!** Nothing. They called me nothing. I felt nothing! (A Chorus Line)

"So, how was it?" Elphaba questioned as she welcomed Faye and Liir home from the dance.

"How was what?" Faye asked, stashing the broom in the corner by the door.

"The dance!" Elphaba shut the front door.

"Oh, that. Fine. It was fine." Faye started up the stairs. Elphaba turned to look at Liir.

"No, it was not _fine_." Liir said. "Faye started doing the Elphie and would have ruined the whole dance if Holly didn't save her."

"Faye did WHAT?! Young lady, why in Oz would you do such a thing?" Faye paused on the stairs.

"Because mom, I thought everyone else would think it was cool. You taught it to me, and I liked it."

Elphaba sighed. "The reason I taught it to you was because it was so silly. When I did it at my school dance, everyone laughed and one of my friends had to rescue me, too."

"You failed to mention that before."

"Yes, well, it was a painful event. Just promise me you won't ever do it again."

"Fine, I promise. But I don't understand."

"If anyone recognizes you doing the dance…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Our lives would be in danger, etcetera, etcetera, blah, blah, blah. I mean come one, we're already careful enough as it is, and it's not like one of your old schoolmates is a teacher at my high school supervising the dance."

"I guess you're right," Elphaba sighed. "But I just don't want you to embarrass yourself. Or your brother."

"Thank you!" Liir cried out.

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Shen Shen had left supervising the dance about an hour ago, and had returned back to headquarters. She pulled out her mirror to check her lipstick, and a picture floated to the floor. She picked it up, looked at it quickly, and shoved it back in her purse. It was a picture of her, Glinda, and Pfanne. They were doing each other's hair in Glinda's suite. In the corner of the picture was a girl with green skin reading from a history book.

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Holly approached Faye at their locker the next day after school let out. "So, Faye I was thinking."

"You really shouldn't- it's dangerous."

"Oh, aren't you the funny one!" Holly giggled and tossed her light blonde curls over her shoulder. "Anyway, I thought that you should come over for a sleepover tomorrow night."

"A sleepover? I don't think so."

"But it's not even a school night."

"True. But I've never been to one before."

"Man, you are making sooo many jokes today!"

"No, I'm serious."

Holly froze. "Wow. Well, that's all the more reason to come. Imagine: your very first sleepover. You're very first sleepover _ever_!"

"Well, I'll ask my parents and talk to you tomorrow."

"Or you can just call me."

"My family doesn't have a phone."

"Oh, that's okay. You can just call me on your cell phone." Faye didn't bother to correct her. "See you later!"

"Sure." Faye murmured.

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"A sleepover? Well, I don't know dear. See what your father says." Elphaba told Faye when she got home.

"Hey, dad," Faye asked. "Can I go to a sleepover tomorrow night?"

"Sure. And bring me back some coffee. We're running out." Fiyero was deeply engrossed in his newspaper.

"Uh, dad? I don't think the Uplands will be pleased with us delving into their coffee supply."

"Huh?" Fiyero looked up from his newspaper.

"Can…I…go…to…a…sleepover?" Faye enunciated.

"Oh, I don't know." Fiyero said. "Ask your mother." He went back to his newspaper. Faye rolled her eyes and turned back to her mom.

"Well, I suppose it would be good for you socialize." Elphaba admitted. "And to do something without your brother for once. But you will have to be very careful and not give out any personal information. Where does Holly live anyway?"

"In the palace with her parents."

"Oh, is her mother a maid to Lady Glinda?" This was a common situation with a lot of girls' mothers. Their fathers usually worked in local businesses around the castle. Lady Glinda paid nicely and treated her servants very fairly.

"No, mom. Her mother _is _Lady Glinda."

Elphaba paused for a minute, then collected herself. "Well, you'll have to be very careful then, dear. You can't let the ruler of Oz find out that you're the Wicked Witch's daughter."

"I know, Mom. I'll be careful."


	5. Popular

Disclaimer: I only thought of the second generation people. The first generation, plus some names, belong to the minds of others!

A/N: This chapter may seem a little boring with all the descriptions and stuff, but I wanted to convey the Upland's wealth.

"So…" Faye said awkwardly, looking around Holly's room. The last five minutes had amazed her. She had knocked on the palace door, and a butler opened it to reveal a grand foyer with an enormous crystal chandelier. A large marble staircase was in front of her. Faye determined that they must lead to the bedrooms. Off to the sides were open entryways to various rooms, but Faye's favorite feature was right behind the stairs. A few steps led down to a sunken in living room, and the most enormous wall Faye had ever seen was on the far side, completely covered with rectangular glass sections.

Then someone picked up her bags, waking Faye from her amazement, and led her across a breezeway to where Holly was sitting in an outdoor living area. This must be Holly's room. But where did she sleep? There was no bed. And why was it outside?

"So I was thinking…what's wrong?" Holly asked.

"I don't mean to be rude or anything, but…where's your bed?"

"In my bedroom, of course!"

"Isn't this your bedroom?" Faye was confused.

"Of course not, silly! This is only the atrium."

"Why are we here?"

"Well, my room is in a separate wing, I pretty much have the East Wing to myself, so the breezeway is the quickest way to get here from the front door."

"You have your own wing?" Faye was astounded.

"So?"

"That's just…really cool."

"I know, isn't it?! Bartholomew," Holly motioned to the bellhop. "Please take Faye's bags into my lower bedroom."

"You have different levels of your bedroom?"

"Well, the upper one's the loft; you have to take the second-story breezeway to get up there." Holly chirped. Faye looked up and there was another breezeway above her, but it was more like an elevated walkway, because it had glass halfway up the sides.

"The lower bedroom is pretty much like a living room area." Faye couldn't believe that anyone lived like this. Her "wing" was her bedroom which was as big as Holly's atrium. And Faye lived in a castle!

"Why?" Holly asked. "Is your bedroom like Aysel's?" Aysel was Shen Shen's daughter. "Her's is only one level. It's about half the size of mine."

"Yeah, I guess." Faye doubted that her bedroom was half the size of Holly's. More like an eighth.

"Anyway, come on in. We have a lot of work to do, and not very much time."

"Work? You mean like housework?" Faye frowned. None of the books she read had ever mentioned doing chores at a sleepover.

"No, silly! Work as in work on you! I'm going to make you popular! Just not quite as popular as me," Holly quickly added. Faye groaned.

Holly was applying a green gooey mixture onto Faye's face. Holly called it an avocado face mask, but Faye called it slime.

"So…do you have any other siblings besides Liir?" Holly asked Faye.

"Yeah…two sisters, Nessarose and Glinda."

"Glinda? Like my mom?" Faye had never thought of that. Why did her mom name Faye's little sister Glinda? Weren't they supposed to be enemies?

"Wow. I never noticed that."

"Oh, it's okay. A lot of people name their kids after my mom. Even a few Ozians named them after me!" Faye was stunned at that. Why would anyone name their kids after someone they hardly knew? Speaking of which, shouldn't that apply to her mom? Maybe she had known Glinda before she became the Wicked Witch….

"Hey Holly, do you think that our moms might have known each other…you know…in the past?"

"Maybe at Shiz! Remember? You said your mom went there."

"Yeah…maybe-" Before Faye could finish her sentence, there was a clang of metal and a tin man fell into the upper room as the door swung open. Boq had been listening in at the door he assumed to be closed, but when he leaned against it, it opened.

"Boq!" Holly shrieked. "What are you doing? Get out!!!" Boq looked up and saw Faye in her green face mask. Something sparked in his eyes and he started screaming.

"Ahh!!! It's Elphaba-she's back! She's back!" He started rapidly backing up, and ran into the banister. Being made of tin, he lost his balance easily and fell over the edge. Holly stood up and screamed. On the way down, Boq managed to grab onto the chandelier. Within a few moments, Glinda and Eric, Holly's dad, ran into the room.

"Holly what in Oz is going on?" Glinda suddenly caught sight of the tinman swinging from the chandelier. "Boq!" She screamed. "Get down from there this instant!"

"If I may, your ladyship," Boq began, "How might I go about doing that?" He had a valid point. A drop from that high up, and he could fall apart. Almost as bad as rusting.

After some servants had fetched a ladder and gotten Boq down, Holly and Faye were left in peace again.

"Do you think he heard our conversation?" Faye asked.

"Probably," Holly answered. "He is sooo annoying. He's supposed to be a royal advisor, but my mom hates him." She looked up. "Elphaba? Who is that anyway?"

"I have no idea! Never heard it before. That's a really weird name!" Faye laughed nervously.

"Yeah, that was really weird. Anyway, we need to get his mask off now." Faye breathed a sigh of relief. That was close. _Really _close.

After two more hours of continuous straightening, moisturizing, plucking, waxing, a new wardrobe, make-up, and practically every other beauty treatment, Holly declared Faye "done". Holly handed her a small hand mirror.

"Why Faye, look at you! You're beautiful!" Holly exclaimed.

Faye examined herself in the mirror. "I…I have to go," She said quickly.

"Go?" Holly asked.

"To the bathroom." Faye excused herself and went across the East Wing hallway to the humongous bathroom that was almost the size of Holly's bedroom. _You could get lost in here!_ Faye thought. After going through about ten bottles of various liquids and moisturizers, Faye finally found the soap. Because she couldn't use water, she just soaped up her hands and wiped them on the towel. Then she returned to Holly's bedroom.


	6. Yearbooks, Dungeons,& Heated Discussions

A/N: Sorry it took so long to update! Anway, here ends my pre-written chapters. So it will be even longer between updates now! Lo siento!!

"Faye, Faye, wake up!"

Faye mumbled something unintelligible, then after some more vigorous shaking, said groggily, "Five more minutes, Nessa!"

"Nessa?" The voice said. "This is Holly, silly! Get up! I wanted to show you something." Faye turned over on her back, realizing the mistake as soon as she made it. A bright, blonde head was smiling at her intently. Faye groaned, realizing she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, and slipped out of the cot Holly had her servants set up. Faye rubbed her eyes and looked up at Holly in her tank top and shorts. They were very stylish, for pajamas, compared to Faye's. Faye was wearing flannel pants and an oversize Shiz University t-shirt.

"What is it?"

"Come look what I found," Holly motioned to the floor beside her bed.

Faye sat beside Holly, cross-legged, and stared at the dusty cover of a book. Holly blew on the book and wiped her hand across the cover. The words 'Shiz University' were revealed in silver lettering.

"It's my mom's old yearbook from Freshman year," Holly explained. "It's only been about 20 years, but this book was in this storage room we never go into. Loads of dust bunnies! I found it when I was looking for the observatory, and this book caught my eye. I was saving it for when you got up. But then I couldn't stand the suspense so I woke you up! Isn't this exciting!" Holly giggled and started flipping through pages.

"Look- there's my mom!" The ruler of Oz in all her rose and pearl appeared with two other ditsy looking young girls. The caption identified them as Pfannee Platanium and Shen Shen Rosario.

"Anyway, I thought maybe we could find your mom." Holly began flipping through the pages again; this time to the student profile page. "Thrigg, Thrigg," she murmured. Dust flew up from the pages, making Faye sneeze. It was clear Glinda hadn't looked through this yearbook for a while. What Faye didn't know was that the last time the ruler did, she became so overcome with grief that she put the book in an unused room and tried to push the taunting thoughts out of her mind.

"Umm, Holly," Faye began. "I'm not sure if this is a good idea." Her voice sounded weak.

"Shh!" Holly put her finger to her lips and looked back at the page. Her finger scrolled across the portraits and text, lingering between Thropp and Trinaught.

"There's no Thrigg," Holly paused, looking up at Faye. "Are you sure your mom went there? I guess she could be younger than my mom…Oh wait."

Faye froze. What did Holly know?

"Thrigg is her marriage name! What was her maiden name?" Faye had a few quick seconds to think. If she told Holly the truth, Holly would trust her and they would be best friends. Faye's mind whirled. Holly was very influential. She could make the whole school like Faye…oh, what was she thinking? Selfish thoughts aside, Faye thought of her mother. Elphaba had told Faye _never_ to tell anyone about their family's secret. Besides, if she told Holly that her mom was the Wicked Witch of the West, Holly would probably tell her mom and they would hold Faye captive until they found Elphaba….

"Holly, I really don't want to do this. I think it's the wrong year anyway. How about you show me how to put on that foundation again?" _Please work. Pleeeaaase work!_

"Ummm…okay." Holly looked a little disheartened but pleased at the same time because Faye was showing in interest in make-up.

_Thank you, thank you, thank you!!_ Faye followed Holly into her bathroom.

Meanwhile, Boq was having a meeting at his evil lair. It was conveniently located below the palace in the dungeons, which were never used. Even if Lady Glinda suspected something, she would never think to look in her own house!

"Shen Shen, please begin the meeting by reading last week's minutes," Boq directed, sitting back in his large, comfortable chair, creaking as he attempted to cross his legs. Shen Shen flipped back a page in her clipboard and began to read.

"6:00 p.m. the meeting begins. 6:01 p.m. Supreme President and CEO Boq instructs the secretary, me," Shen Shen interrupted the reading with a girly giggle. "to read last weeks minutes. While reading last week's minutes, the vice president walks in late. 6:02 p.m. Supreme President and CEO Boq gets into argument with-"

"Heated discussion," Boq interrupted.

"-heated discussion with the vice president." At this point in Shen Shen's reading, the door burst open as a large, heavily powdered woman with high piled white hair swept into the room.

"The vice president has arrived!" Madame Morrible crooned, with outstretched arms.

"It's about time!" Boq stood up from his large, comfortable chair and walked over to her. "You're always late! We need you to be here on time in order to properly conduct our meetings of evil intentions!"

"It's not my fault! I get here when I can. It's not that easy to sneak into the palace when I'm supposed to be locked up at Southstairs!"

Boq turned to Shen Shen, who was gazing at them with her typical clueless look. "Are you getting this down?" Boq questioned the secretary, who began scribbling away on a new page.

"Supreme President and CEO Boq gets into argument with-"

"Heated discussion," Boq corrected. Shen Shen nodded and corrected the paper.

"-heated discussion with the vice president, who, in turn-"

"What's all this Supreme President and CEO nonsense?" Madame Morrible asked, and walked over to sit in the large, comfortable chair. "I thought you were just President."

"I was," Boq said. "But now I am Supreme President and CEO. And…" Boq paused as he walked over behind Madame Morrible in the large, comfortable chair. "That large, comfortable chair you are sitting on, is mine. You may join Shen Shen on the floor." Shen Shen scooted over and patted the ground beside her.

"Fine," Madame Morrible said, and threw up her hands. "It wasn't that large or comfortable anyway." She sniffed. "And you can't be CEO. To be CEO, you need to have an organization."

"Exactly!" Boq had a twisted look on his face. "That is part of my new plan. First, I will capture the Wicked Witch, harness her power, take over the world with my amazing new strength, and then…" Boq paused dramatically, "Open Muscle Man Amusement Park! All the kiddies will be waiting in line to enter Oz's new main attraction- and it's all to do with me!"

Shen Shen coughed politely and wrote down what Boq had said. Madame Morrible looked at Boq with an odd expression on her face.

"Muscle Man Amusement Park? That had nothing to do with our original plan to capture Oz and turn it into a dark and stormy uninhabitable land, turning all citizens into subservient slaves while we live luxuriously at the palace."

"Yes, well, if Oz is constantly stormy and dreary, no one will want to visit the theme park!"

"If all goes as planned, there won't _be_ a theme park!"

"Not if everything goes according to _my _plan!"

"Well that's why we're not going to follow _your _plan!"

"Heated discussion," Shen Shen drew the words out as she wrote them.


	7. Substitute

**Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked. Enough said.**

**A/N: The yearbook thing was confusing, considering the time passage in the play isn't clear. I'm not sure when Elphaba left, so I didn't know whether to have her sign Glinda's freshman yearbook. Instead, I showed them in a picture with a caption, and the kids looked at their father's yearbook. **

As soon as the questioning was over (the Boq incident was not mentioned), Faye raced down the wide hallway to the library. She skidded to a stop at the doorway and headed over the section where the yearbooks were kept.

"Liir, Liir come here, I want to show you something!"

Faye's twin trudged into the library where he was beckoned over to a musty section in the right corner. Faye was holding an old yearbook from Shiz University.

"Look, here's dad," Faye pointed to the Winkie Prince with a scandalous smile on his face. "And here's mom," She pointed again to a green girl with a scowl.

"Uh-huh. Look Faye, if you want to reminiscence about something that occur before you were born, go ahead. But I have better things to do."

"Like what?"

"Like-"

Faye interrupted. "It doesn't matter. That's not what I was trying to show you. Look at _this_." The older twin pointed to a picture of the current Supreme Ruler of Oz, Lady Glinda.

"Lady Glinda went to school with our parents. I guess that's neat. It's not like they have an autograph or anything."

"But they do," Faye had a sly smile on her face and flipped to the back of the book. It was her father's copy, so the pink fluorescent ink stood out from the illegible scribbles of male students.

Dearest Fiyero,

I hope you have enjoyed our freshman year at Shiz as much as I did. Had a great time at the Ozdust Ballroom dancing. Hope to see you over the summer.

Love,

Glinda

"Ok, so maybe Lady Glinda knew our dad. So?"

"Look at this," Faye flipped back through the pages to the cameo shots. Elphaba and Glinda were standing beside each other under a large oak tree on the green. The caption read,

_Best friends Glinda Upland and Elphaba Thropp were got to know each other when they became roommates at the beginning of the year. They enjoy studying sorcery together. _

Best friends? "Faye…"

"I know. Mom never told us."

"Do you think we should bring it up?"

"No, at least not directly. We should try to trick her into saying something."

"Does Holly know?"

"No. She doesn't even know who our mom is, remember? She would think it's odd that we knew that her mom was best friends with the Witch and she didn't."

"Right. So let's keep it a secret, then?"

"Agreed." The two shook each others pinkies.

The next day, Holly and Glinda walked from their locker to homeroom together. Instead of finding Ms. Simpkins, their eighty-one hard of hearing instructor, there was a tin man.

"Boq?" Holly looked shocked.

"Book?" The tinman twirled his obviously fake moustache. "Book?" I know not of zis 'book' you speak oof." The tinman spoke with a horribly unrealistic foreign accent.

"I eem your substitute teachair, Mr. François." Mr. François wrote his name on the board, 'Mr. Franswaa'. A few children giggled. Holly rolled her eyes, flipped her hair over her shoulders, and raised her hand.

"Ah, yes, Miss Upland." Mr. François pointed to her.

"Ok, Mr. _François._ Number one, you can get rid of that ridiculous moustache. Number two, your real name is Boq. You work for my mom. She said you called in sick today. How else would you know my name?" Mr. François looked as though he was trying to think of an excuse. But Holly plowed on. "And number three, please stop talking with that ridiculous accent. You're giving me a headache." The blonde girl rubbed her temples.

"Alright, if it is an Ozian accent you want, it's an Ozian accent you'll get." Mr. François talked normally now.

"Ok, I have some forms to hand out." He passed papers down the rows. Faye and Holly looked at theirs. It looked like copies of the same thing, written in what looked like a kindergartener's handwriting and crude drawings illustrating the steps. It read, "My evil plan to take over the world. Step one: Capture Wicked Witch and children and steal their power. Step Two: Become immensely strong and powerful as a result. Step three: Rule the world. Step Four: Open Muscle Man Amusement Park.

"Umm…what exactly are we supposed to fill out?" A Gillikin in the back asked. Mr. François glanced down at the paper and looked like his eyes were about to pop out of his tin head.

"Oh, I seemed to have made copies of the wrong sheet. This is my outline for my new children's book, 'My Evil Plan to Take Over the World'. It's quite embarrassing actually. From how dashingly manly I look, you'd never think I had a soft side." The students stared. "Very well, then, hand it back in, and be sure to check Ozbooks for my new children's book coming soon!" The substitute quickly took up all the papers. "I did the illustrations myself, you know," he added. A few students nodded their heads, puzzled expressions on their faces.

Faye was freaking out. Boq had overheard her talking to Holly at the sleepover, and now it looked like he was planning something against her mom- and Nessa- and herself! Lady Glinda should be able to stop the problem by putting Boq in jail. Faye turned to Holly.

"Holly…umm…can I talk to you? There's something really important I need to say." Maybe Faye should wait until after school when she could talk to her mom. It might be too late by then, though.

"Ok, sure!" Holly sat and smiled at her, perkily.

"In private?"

Holly's eyes lit up. "Mr. French guy sir, can we please go to the bathroom?"

"Ah, yes. And you, Miss Thrigg?"

"I, uh…I need to go get a drink of water please."

"Ok, the water fountain is right outside the door." The sub reminded her.

"Yes, but I like to use the one on the other side of the school. It has colder water."

"Very well then, but return soon. I still need to hand out these forms!"

The two girls scurried out the door.


	8. Kidnapping

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wicked. (Sigh) And the Chihuahua line said by Liir is from the Suite Life of Zack and Cody. **

Holly and Faye conducted their meeting in the girls bathroom. To prevent form being overheard, they had gone to the third floor bathroom. No one ever used it because the plumbing was so awful.

"Holly-" Faye began.

"Don't speak. I know exactly what you're going to say."

"You do?" Faye couldn't fathom how Holly had learned her secret.

"Yes. And I totally agree. This bathroom, while providing a sound-proof guarantee, stinks. That's why I always carry this." Holly pulled a pink spray bottle out of her handbag and began spraying the bathroom air. Soon the room began to smell of lilies rather than backed-up sewage.

"Look, Holly. That story…that Boq wrote. You know it's fake, right?"

"Duh. I'm not as dumb blonde as I look. Boq is trying to steal the Witch's power. And while the wicked Witch is, well, wicked, she hasn't done anything to harm Oz in over fifteen years. I think Boq poses more of a threat right now. Only, he's so careless. He can't be behind the plot. He must be working for someone. We'll need to be careful. There could be spies anywhere."

"Holly, I'm not who you think I am."

"I know. I've kind of been avoiding the topic, but after that sleepover thing and the yearbook, I did some research."

"The yearbook-our moms were friends." Faye said, treading lightly, not sure where Holly was heading.

"Yes, roommates! A few of our guards worked for the Wizard, and I talked to the one that was there that day your mom left. I wanted to know the truth. At that point…well…I wasn't sure if I could trust you." Faye nodded, but allowed Holly to continue. "He told me your mom freed the monkeys after Madame Morrible and the Wizard were trying to use her power for their own plans. I'm sure that's why my mom made sure they were taken care of. She knew your mom, but she couldn't tell the rest of Oz for fear of losing her position, her position that can prevent guards from tracking the Witch and locking her up. About Boq, we can't let him try something like the fiasco with the Wizard. My mom- she misses your mom, Faye. I know it. If we can just bring the two together, I'm sure they could stop Boq."

"Faye's eyes were brimming with tears. "Oh, gosh Faye," Holly gushed. "Don't cry. This is so unlike you; here, let me get you some tissues or something."

Holly plugged her nose and got Faye some toilet paper out of one of the stalls. Faye blew her nose. "Gosh, Holly, I'm just so glad you want to help." Suddenly, the lights went out and the girls couldn't see a thing.

"Let's get out of here. We'll probably be able to see in the hall," Holly suggested.

"Okay," Faye agreed, and the two walked out the bathroom door. Footsteps of students sounded through the hallways as they left their classes to go to the main floor.

"We should go to the gym. They'll have emergency lighting there," Holly said to Faye behind her. "Where's Liir right now?" There was no reply. "Faye? Faye!" But Faye was gone.

"Let go of me!" Faye shouted. "Let go!" There was no one to hear here except her kidnapper. The other students had left the hall in search of light.

"Oh, shut up!" The person with a death grip on Faye's arm shouted back at the girl.

"Where are you taking me?"

"You'll find out soon enough!"

"You'll never get away with this!" Faye shouted.

Shen Shen just laughed. 

"Liir!" Holly ran across two rows of bleachers, ditching her wannabe followers as well as her shoes. The followers, on the other hand, didn't follow that strategy, and were having trouble following in heels.

Liir turned his head to see Holly hurtling towards him, and was dragged off into the corner of the gym.

"Liir, Faye's gone."

"Gone," Liir repeated blankly.

"I think she's been kidnapped. Boq accidently handed an outline out in homeroom. He's plotting something, and it involved kidnapping Faye. I think he's done it now. We need to reunite our parents, so they can stop him."

"Faye showed me something in a yearbook," Liir was beginning to catch on. "Our parents were friends at school."

"Right. And if my mom knew your mom was alive, she'd do anything to help her! Liir, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Holly asked.

"That Chihuahuas have freakishly large ears? I mean, compared to their tiny bodies, they're like, massive!"

"Uh, no. I was thinking that Boq kidnapped your mom and sisters and we're going to need to rescue them before he opens that dumb amusement park."

"Oh. Well, yeah. I was thinking that, too. You know, subconsciously."

"Right. Anyway, we better hurry!" The two raced off.

Shen Shen had taken Faye out of the dark school through a back door and was leading her into the woods behind a playing field.

"Here we are." The Home Ec teacher had stopped at a thick, tall oak tree.

"This won't hurt a bit," a voice said from behind Faye. She whirled around in time to see Boq holding something over her head. Then everything was black.

"So I lied," said Boq to Faye's unconscious body, crumpled on the ground. "Deal with it."

3


	9. Reunion

**A/N: I revised this chapter. I don't think that Elphaba and Glinda's reunion was made out to be as big of a deal as I would have liked, and Faye and Liir definitely need to tell Elphaba and Glinda about Faye's kidnapping. I'm still not sure what to think about this revised chapter…I may change the part where Elphaba and Glinda first meet again. Please review and tell me what you think! **

"What's the quickest way to your house?" Holly asked Liir.

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

"Because it's a secret," Liir whispered.

"Liir!"

"Alright. Faye and I travel by broom."

"Broom?"

"Broom."

"Well, I prefer bubble, so why don't we go to my house first. We can make up some story to tell my mom, I can get some other shoes, and then my mom can take us to you house by bubble."

"Ok. It's probably better that way. I'm not sure we could convince my mom to come to the palace."

"Right. Let's go out the back door." The two blondes walked to the back of the gym and started toward the palace. Their absence was not noticed amid the turmoil that was occurring about the lack of power.

"Where are we going again?" Glinda asked her daughter. The two Uplands were accompanied by Liir, so Glinda's bubble was very cramped. Holly hadn't had much time to explain, but at least she had put on some comfortable shoes.

"Liir overheard someone at school talking about the Gillikin bandits hiding out here and told me about it."

The Gillikan bandits were a small group of thieves that had been robbing homes in Gillikan country. Lady Glinda, originating from the Upper Uplands, wanted to handle the matter herself.

"Yes, I know it's somewhere 'out here', but where exactly?"

"Umm…" Holly stalled. "The old castle?"

Glinda's famous smile disappeared but she said nothing. Holly had been more worried about her mother recognizing Liir, but so far Glinda hadn't shown any signs of recognition.

Lady Glinda brought the bubble down on the path leading to the front door. She walked in front, with Holly and Liir behind her.

"How do you suggest I address this?" Glinda asked Holly. Such questions were not uncommon- Glinda was preparing her daughter to become the next ruler.

"I think we should knock," said Liir, stepped up to Glinda's right, and knocked on the door.

After a moment, footsteps were heard. "Who is it?" called Elphaba in a disguised voice. Liir knocked twice, spoke his name, and knocked two more times.

Glinda whirled around to look at Holly, but had no time to speak before the door opened. Glinda whirled back around to look at the face of the dear friend she thought she had lost so long ago.

A long silence, then finally, "Elphie?"

The green witch nodded and stepped forward to embrace Glinda.

"What…I thought you were dead." Glinda stated.

"It was for the best."

"I missed you so much!"

"Me too. But no one could know I was alive. I wanted you to know, but then you might've acted on that information and I wanted you to keep your position. It was really for the better. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about what could've been, but we're still friends for good."

"For good." Glinda wiped her eyes. "I just don't understand how Holly knew to find you here, or how she even knew about you." Glinda turned to her daughter.

"Mom, I know this must be a very…_emotional_ time for you, but Liir and I have a pressing issue to tell you about." Glinda waited for Holly to proceed. "I knew Elpha- er…Mrs. Thrigg's, or, well, you know, _her_ daughter from school, but I didn't know that she was the daughter of the "Wicked Witch" until recently. I also didn't know you had a history with her. But the thing is, Boq kinda…has this plan that he wants to take over the world. He sorta kidnapped Faye at school today-"

"What!" Elphaba's eyes widened.

"-and he's coming for you next, Mrs…"

"Elphaba would be fine, but are you sure? Boq hasn't caused any trouble for over fifteen years!"

Glinda snorted. "He's my advisor and he has been rather troublesome, but I never expected this. Still, I suppose he wants power?"

"Yes," Liir spoke up. "And to open an amusement park." Elphaba and Glinda exchanged glances.

"Now that sounds like Boq," Elphaba said. "I'm not so sure that he would devise a kidnapping plan. You don't think…" Elphaba and Glinda exchanged glances again.

"Morrible," They said in unison.

"Elphie, it's so good to see you again," gushed Glinda. "But as ruler of Oz I have pressing matters to attend to. Seeing as it's a personal matter for you, would you like to assist me?"

Elphaba straightened up. "Of course. No tinman kidnaps my daughter and gets away with it! Let me speak to my husband and children, and then we will be off at once."

"Your husband? Well, of course you're married Elphaba, but who-"

"Elphaba, you didn't tell me we were having company!" A voice called from inside the house. Someone opened the door wider from behind Elphaba.

"Glinda! What a wonderful surprise!" exclaimed the scarecrow.

Glinda stared at the speaker for a moment, then said, "Fiyero?"

"The one and only."

"But how…"

"It's a long story, and I'll explain it on the way, Glinda." Elphaba began. "Fiyero, you'll watch over the children, including these two?" She indicated to Holly and Liir. "We have important business to attend to in the Emerald City."

"Okey, dokey, artichokie," Fiyero replied. Everyone stared. "Get it…artichoke…oh, never mind."

"We'll see you later, bye dears!" Elphaba and Glinda waved goodbye to the crowd clustered around the door.

"Well come on in, and let's get the party started!" Fiyero waved his hand for Holly and Liir to come in. They did so, and Fiyero closed the door. Liir suddenly burst out laughing.

"What?" Holly asked.

"I got the joke! You know- artichoke!" Liir explained between laughs.

"Pretty clever of me, huh son? Let me go get some celebratory drinks!" Fiyero left the foyer, and Holly followed Liir into the adjoining sitting room. Nessa and baby Glinda, who had been watching from the stairway balcony, ran down into the sitting room.

Fiyero returned with a tray of champagne flutes. "Anyone?" Fiyero asked holding the tray out.

Before anyone could protest, baby Glinda picked up a glass, chugged it, announced, "Eww…tastes yucky!", and threw up on the floor.

"Here, try another one," Fiyero handed the little blonde girl a different glass and Nessa and Holly leaped off the couch.

**A/N: In case anyone is wondering, baby Glinda isn't a "baby", she's a toddler. She is referred to as "baby Glinda" so as not to confuse her with the other Glinda. **


	10. Attempted Rescue

**A/N: Before you read this chapter, make sure you have read the revised Chapter 9! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wicked the Broadway Musical. This includes but is not limited to song lyrics, script, certain characters, soundtrack, etc., etc., etc. Also, the excellent question quote is from **_**Meet the Robinsons**_**, now available on Disney DVD and Blu-ray Disc!**

"Are you sure you know how to fly this thing?" Holly was sitting side-saddle style on the family broom. Elphaba had taken her own broom, so Nessa was flying beside Holly and Liir on the emergency spare one.

"Yeah," Liir replied, turning his head to face Holly "I mean Faye normally steers, but I have everything under control."

"Look out!" Nessa screamed. Liir turned his head back around just in time to jerk the broom out of the way of a particularly large tree trunk. Holly screamed as she almost fell off the broom.

"You might want to swing your leg around," Liir suggested. "That way it will be harder to fall off."

Holly's white knuckles gripped the broom handle tighter as she swung her right leg over.

"Where do you think they're flying too?" Asked Nessa, referring to Elphaba and Glinda.

"That is an excellent question!" Liir exclaimed. "Any ideas, Holly?"

"My mom will probably report back to the castle to gather some guards and see if Boq is somehow still there. I doubt it. He probably has some evil lair somewhere off in the Badlands."

"To the palace, then," Nessarose said. "We will have to land soon and walk part of the way so no one spots us." The brooms began to descend.

Elphaba and Glinda had arrived at the palace by Glinda's bubble, and had entered through Lady Glinda's entrance in the South Wing, so as not to be seen. Still, Elphaba cast a spell so that no one could see her unless they were specifically looking for her. The two friends past two guards on the way to Glinda's chambers, but they only acknowledged Lady Glinda.

"Okay, what do we do now?" Glinda asked Elphaba, sinking into a light pink settee.

"What does this do?" Elphaba pushed opened an ornately decorated pink box. A girl clad in a pink dress popped up, bubbles started issuing from the sides of the box, and a familiar tune began to play.

_I'll show you what shoes to wear, how to fix your hair_

_Everything that really counts to be popular_

_I'll help you be popular_

Elphaba hurriedly closed the box. "Well, we need a plan. You say Boq is behind this? Where would he keep Faye?"

"How about the same place I'm going to keep you?" Boq stepped out from the shadows. The tinman had an evil smile on his face. As both Elphaba and Glinda turned to look at Boq, they were blindfolded and knocked unconscious.

"Ok, so what exactly are we looking for again?" Nessa asked Holly.

"Any sign that Boq had been there recently. We might find a clue to where his secret lair is."

The three adolescents walked the halls of Southwest Wing, where Boq spent most of his time. Just as they were about to turn into another corridor, Liir, who was in the front, held out his arm for Nessarose and Holly to stop.

"Shh!" Liir held his finger to his lips. "Do you hear that?" He whispered.

The three listened carefully. There seemed to be someone walking down the corridor they had almost turned into…and it sounded like Boq!

"Hurry up!" The voice called again.

"I can't believe they're so heavy!" A high-pitched voice whined.

"Well we all can't be anorexic. Some of us look very regal with the extra weight." A dignified yet annoying sounding voice responded. The footsteps were growing closer.

"Regal? Does that mean fat, 'cause-"

"Silence!" Boq's voice sounded again. The footsteps seemed to have stopped momentarily, so Liir went over to the curtains on the window across the hall and motioned for them to hide there. Nessa gave him a look, but Liir returned with a fiercer one. The two girls scurried over and hid themselves in the curtains with Liir.

The footsteps started again, but no dialogue accompanied them. Boq and his two accomplices turned the corner into Liir, Nessa, and Holly's hallway. As the three villains passed the window, Nessa backed even further into the ledge and blew up a cloud of dust.

"Aah-aah-aah-CHOO!" Liir sneezed.

"Bless you," Boq said. The footsteps continued on. "Wait a minute…" The three in the curtains held their breaths.

"I found it!" the high-pitched voice cried, and the sound of a heavy and creaky door being opened distracted Boq. The children all let out their breaths.

"Yes!" Boq cried. "The doorway to the dungeons that will help me carry out my evil and dastardly plan!"

"I think you mean _our_ plan!" The dignified voice corrected.

"Yes, yes, of course!" Boq went on. "But let us proceed to our evil lair!"

"Eww!" the high-pitched voice whined. "There are like, spider webs and yucky things down there! How am I supposed to see where I'm going when I have to carry _her _down the steps?"

Nessa peeked out from behind her curtain. A tall and heavily-powdered lady had Holly's mother in her arms, while a younger-looking blonde seemed to have the task of carrying Elphaba, was currently sprawled on the floor.

"You can take a bath later. Now, onwards!" Boq raised his arm and pointed his finger into the dark stairwell. The blonde picked Elphaba back up and carried her awkwardly down the stairs while the tall lady followed.


	11. Nightmare

**A/N: Ok, really short chapter, but I think the next one will be a bit longer.**

"Oh my gosh!" Exclaimed Nessarose, leaping out from behind the curtain. "That was so close!"

Holly gave a sigh of relief and sunk to the floor.

Liir offered her his hand. "We probably need to get out of there in case they come back.

"Right." Holly said. "My chambers are on the other side of the palace, so we will probably be safe there to come up with a plan. But we do need to hurry."

Ten minutes later, the three were sprawled across couches and various other furnishings in Holly's main floor bedroom.

"I got nothing," Liir said from the white upholstered armchair.

"Neither do I," Holly agreed from her pink chaise langue.

"Maybe we could have the guards storm the place?" Nessa suggested from her hot pink fuzzy rug.

"How would we convince them to get down there? I don't think they're going to believe us if we tell them that the Royal Advisor, an escaped convict from Southstairs, and a high school home-economics teacher have kidnapped the Wicked Witch of the West and her daughter."

"Point. Do you think we could rescue them by ourselves?" Nessa sounded doubtful, but Holly could tell from her eyes that Nessa was hoping the answer would be 'yes'.

"I don't see how we have any other option." Nessa sat up hopefully. "But we need to make sure that it is well-planned out." Holly pondered for a moment before continuing. "I suppose each of us can try to take out either Boq, Madame Morrible or Shen Shen. Then we can get Ms. Elphaba and Faye to safety."

"Uh, Holly?" Nessa was squirming awkwardly on the rug. I don't want to delay this whole "save-the-world" business, but I _really_ need to use the bathroom."

"Oh!" Holly jumped up from her seat. "It's right here," Holly walked over to the door leading into her bathroom.

Nessa went in, shut the door, and flicked on the light. There was a rather loud gasp from inside as she realized how spacious the bathroom was.

"Hey, Holly?" Liir said softly. "I'm kind of worried about bringing Nessa along to rescue my mom and Faye. Wouldn't that just make it sort of easy for them to capture her because she's the next target?"

"True. But we definitely need her help. We can't even attempt to rescue them if it's just the two of us."

"So what are we going to do?"

"Oh, I have an idea…"

* * *

On the damp floor of the dungeons, Glinda and Elphaba lay tied up beside Faye. Both adults were in a dreamless state of unconsciousness, but Faye was having a nightmare. 

_Faye was in the Home-Ec room with Holly. Professor Shen Shen opened the oven, and Fiyero jumped out. He slipped on a banana peel and fell to the ground, laughing, suddenly, his jovial features turned into Boq's, whose maniacal laughter filled the room. Holly screamed, and Lady Glinda and Elphaba burst through the window, each in their respective modes of transportation. A large gust of wind blew the door open, and as Madame Morrible stepped through the doorway, the classroom faded and was replaced by a large field. Faye found herself separated from Holly and surrounded on all four sides. Boq, Madame Morrible, Lady Glinda, and Elphaba were not too far from Faye, about fifty feet away, but they didn't seem to notice her. Madame Morrible raised up her arms, Elphaba and Glinda held up their wands, and Boq whipped out an illegal lightning rod weapon. All at once, Faye was struck by four different lethal forces. _


	12. A Change in Appearance

**Disclaimer: The idea for the disguising spell was inspired by the Polyjuice Potion in the Harry Potter series. Also a reference to _Pride and Prejudice_****, written by Jane Austen. **

* * *

Nessarose Tiggular looked at herself in a panel of Holly's wall-sized mirror. Gone was her green skin, it was replaced by a chestnut brown color. Her nose was made wider, and Nessa flexed it out. _Weird!_ She thought. _My reflection hardly looks like me!_ At least she had been able to keep her brown eyes and dark hair. When she backed up and looked at herself overall, Nessa thought at least she looked pretty. But she couldn't wait to get her regular body back.

Likewise, Holly and Liir stood looking in panels of the mirror. Liir's blonde hair now had a redness to it, like strawberry blonde. Holly said eye color couldn't be as easily changed without risking damage, so his eyes were their original light brown color. Liir's skin had been lightened to a paler color, and his ears were slightly larger. Liir wiggled them and laughed at the reflection.

Holly sighed as she continued to look at her reflection. Out of the three of them, she had needed to be changed the most. Professor Shen Shen didn't have Liir in class, and Boq had only seen him a few times. None of the three villains had ever seen Nessa, but her skin was a dead giveaway. Even though Holly knew who Madame Morrible was, the woman had never seen Holly. But Boq and Shen Shen had numerous times, and that was the reason for the drastic change.

Holly's skin had been darkened to a more tan hue, and her long blonde hair was now short and brown. Holly sighed again. The spell couldn't change the length of her hair, she had needed to cut it herself. When she was turned back to normal, her blonde hair would graze her shoulders. Her lips had been thinned, her nose lengthened, and her eyebrows were slightly bushier. Her bright blue eyes were the last trace of her old self.

Nessarose broke the silence. "Holly, why do we need disguises anyway? It's not like we're going to just waltz into the dungeons while they're carrying out their evil plan, and they're going to let us go just because they don't recognize us."

"First of all, it's to protect your magic. They won't steal it from you if they don't know that you're…you. Secondly, it's for an element of surprise. They will never be expecting an attack from a three schoolchildren who are lost from the tour of the palace. They will be angry, yes, but they won't expect us to fight back."

Nessarose and Liir both nodded understanding.

"So what's the plan?" Nessa asked.

"The plan. Ah, yes...the plan." Holly started.

"We don't have a plan?"

"Let's look at it this way," Holly began, putting her arm around Nessa's shoulder and starting to stroll around the room. Liir sat down on the couch, obediently listening, while Nessarose looked at Holly incredulously.

"You've seen a theatrical performance, haven't you?" Holly plowed on before Nessa could answer. "What makes each performance of the same show different? The improv. Improvisation is the key to success. So we go in pretending to be students lost from a tour, and then surprise attack! We'll each take on a separate villain, divide and conquer, right? Now let's start this soon. I'm beginning to think smart like a brunette." Holly tapped her head twice.

"Well, I guess it will be okay, because we do have the element of surprise…and it does make it more like an adventure!" Nessa was definitely in. Stuck in Kiamo Ko all those years reading books had made her yearn for an adventure of her own. None of the kids in the books ever had plans. They just went in and defeated the villains every time.

"Let's go!" Liir got up from the couch, wiggled his ears in the mirror again, and followed the girls out the door.

* * *

Boq and Madame Morrible sat talking in corner of dungeon discussing their progress so far, while Shen Shen guarded the prisoners. In actuality, she had given up staring at the three unconscious witches ten minutes ago, and had begun to draw flowers on the dungeon with chalk. 

"We still need the last girl to complete our plan," Boq was telling Madame Morrible.

"Don't worry. She will be coming to us."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Don't you know anything?" Boq shook his head. Madame Morrible sighed and continued. "The children will be attempting a rescue. Any minute they will be barging in here, and we will need to be ready for them."

"How could three children possibly harm us?" Boq asked.

"They can't. But we need to be ready to capture them as well. We shall need some more rope and cloth to tie around their mouths. Children have a habit of screaming quite a bit, and frankly that's quite annoying."

"I shall fetch some rope, and you the cloth then," Boq volunteered.

"Agreed." Madame Morrible turned around to see Shen Shen drawing a large green object out of chalk on the dungeon wall.

"Shen Shen?" Madame Morrible walked over to her while Boq left the dungeon to retrieve rope from the storage room on the main floor. "What are you doing? You're supposed to be guarding the prisoners! Now Boq and I were going out to get some more supplies, but I can see that I just can't leave you here alone with the prisoners! You will have to go get cloth in my stead, while I stay here. Boq just left, and I suggest you go now and hurry back. Those dreadful children could be bursting in here any minute, and we shall need cloth to prevent them from screaming."

"Oh, most definitely. Screaming gives me migraines."

"Go, then!"

Shen Shen turned back to her drawing. "Can't I at least finish my tree first?"

"No!"

"Okay," Shen Shen put down the chalk and scurried out the door. Madame Morrible walked over to the large comfortable chair and turned it so it faced the prison cell where Elphaba, Glinda, and Faye were being held. She sat down in the chair and picked up the book she was reading, _Proud and Prejudiced. _


	13. Shen Shen's Predicament

**Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked. **

* * *

"Operation: Rescue commence." Holly led the group down the southwest wing near the dungeon entrance. 

Nessa began to speak her scripted lines. "I'm pretty sure I saw the tour guide go this way," she said loudly.

"Oh look! Here is a door," Liir said, very unnaturally. "Perhaps our tour group went down here." His monotone stopped, and Holly picked up with her bubbly, excited voice.

"Okay!" She stepped forward and opened the door. A large, dimly lit curving staircase was revealed. The stone walls curved around so that what lay past the fourth step couldn't be seen.

"Remember," Holly whispered. "Take it easy. We need to act cool at first, and then BAM! Attack! I'll signal when by saying 'this sure wasn't on the tour itinerary'. Got it?"

Nessa and Liir nodded their heads, and the trio descended down into the dungeon.

* * *

Fifteen minutes prior, Shen Shen was trying to figure out where the rope could be hidden. She walked along the corridors, examining the paintings on the walls. Mainly they were of the former rulers and medieval castles, but there were a few of pretty flowers and birds. Shen Shen sighed. She had always wanted to be an art teacher, but had gotten the job of Home-Ec instead. Nobody seemed to like her art, not even her daughter, Aysel.

Poor Aysel. Shen Shen hadn't seen her since before school started. Aysel went to a privet school up in Gillikin country, where she took special classes for her learning disability. Every summer and holiday break she stayed with her mom and visited with Holly.

Holly…the poor girl was probably on her way right now to rescue that Faye girl. Shen Shen sighed again. Deep thinking caused a lot of sighs. Maybe she should let the witches go free. No, she was likely to fail and Boq and Madame Morrible would be even angrier with her, to say the least. Shen Shen remembered something her father used to tell her: "Never cross over to the bad side, because there's no coming back."

Shen Shen looked up a rather large portrait of Eldrick the Enlarged. He was the ruler of Oz many, many years ago. He had studied alchemy, and was responsible for many scientific discoveries. But one day an experiment had gone horribly wrong. Eldrick's whole body was turned red and puffy, and he could barely walk.

But of course Shen Shen knew nothing of this. She just thought he was a fat, ugly ruler. Perhaps one day there would be a picture of Shen Shen on a wall. Someone would look up at it and think, 'Oh, my. There's that horrible sidekick to Boq the Evil Tinman. She was such a wicked person.' No one would ever know that the only reason she was working for Boq was because her teaching job didn't pay enough money for Aysel's schooling.

A guard on duty in the south wing rounded the corner and found Shen Shen gazing up at the portrait.

"Miss Shen Shen! This is indeed a surprise. We were not informed you would be visiting Lady Glinda on this day."

Shen Shen was caught off guard. If only she was still back in the dungeons, drawing pictures on the walls…

"Why-yes… I'm er…coming to see Lady Glinda. In fact, I, uh, recently ran into her, and…she needs some rope. You know? For…er…that uh, that project she's working on." Shen Shen smiled, showing her perfect pearly white teeth.

The guard didn't know what this 'project' was, but it wasn't his place to ask. It was, however, his place to assist the ruler in anyway possible, so he offered to help Shen Shen find some rope. "I believe there's some rope in the eighth floor storage closet," The guard said. "I can take you there if you like."

"Yes, please."

* * *

While Shen Shen walked off with the guard, Boq returned to the dungeon with the cloth. Upon his arrival, he found Madame Morrible sitting in the large, comfortable chair reading a book. The three captives were still unconscious, but there was no rope in sight.

"Where's the rope?" Boq demanded.

"Oh, I sent Shen Shen to do it," Madame Morrible replied. "Do you really trust her to watch the prisoners?"

"A lot more than I trust her to walk around the castle! You know she could give away our evil intentions at any time!" Boq retorted.

Madame Morrible was quiet for a minute and then said, "Oh."

"Oh!" Boq started rampaging around the room, waving his tin arms every which way. "That's all you have to say?! OH!! Well, OH! Well there goes our whole plan! OH! Now we'll be locked up in Southstairs with maximum security for the rest of eternity! OH! OH! OH!" Boq started jabbing his fingers rapidly in front of Madame Morrible's face.

There was a noise coming from the staircase, the faint sound of footsteps.

"Oh, I suppose that's her now." Madame Morrible said coolly, putting her book down and giving Boq a snide grin. Boq responded with an equally nasty facial expression and turned to face the door.

The great wooden door creaked open on its large black hinges. But instead of Shen Shen standing in the doorframe with rope, there were three schoolchildren.


	14. Multiple Interruptions

**Disclaimer: I'm sure you'll notice a little George of the Jungle in here.**

Boq blinked his tin eyelids twice. He watched as the short brunette elbowed a dopey-looking redhead with unusually large ears.

"My goodness," the boy spoke in a monotone. "I wonder where we are."

The last child, with dark features, said, "I don't see our tour guide anywhere." She appeared to seem much more worried than the Dopey-boy.

By this point, Madame Morrible was edging backwards, slowly turning her head from side to side, looking for some sort of weapon.

"Well," The brunette began. "This sure wasn't on the tour itinerary."

All at once, the children rushed forward, yelling battle cries. The Dopey-boy pulled out a water gun and began to blast Boq. The two girls were plugging their noses and spritzing a misty spray over Madame Morrible.

The door opened for the second time and everyone froze. Madame Morrible had been waving her hands, trying to ward off the spray, and Boq had been shielding his face with his metal hands. The three children had their arms raised, poised to begin spraying their victims again.

"Oh," said Shen Shen. "Is this a bad time?"

"Seize them!" Madame Morrible cried, unfreezing, and then falling to the ground in a coughing fit.

The Dopey-boy had Boq cornered, but the tinman suddenly grinned wickedly.

"Muah-ha-ha-ha-ha!" He cried, raising up his arms and tipping back his head.

"That's…it. That's your evil laugh?" The boy said, more as a statement than a question. "Dude, that needs some serious work."

"Really?" Boq lowered his arms and looked at the boy. "I thought it was rather good. I've been practicing."

"In front of a mirror?" The boy asked.

Boq nodded.

"Figures. Your laugh needs to be deeper and slower, like this-" The boy demonstrated. "MUAH—HA—HA—HA!"

"Like this?" Boq asked, and tried again. "Muah—ha—ha—ha!"

"Better, but not quite." The boy appeared to be thinking. "It needs more menace to it.

Boq tried again. "MUAH-HA-HA-HA!"

He stopped and looked at the boy. "Was that good?"

"Yes, but you're going to fast. Try again…"

* * *

Meanwhile, Shen Shen had dropped the rope, and ran over to Madame Morrible.

"Are you alright?" The young woman asked the older one.

"I believe so." Madame Morrible had stood up, and was dusting off her extravagant floral-print dress. "Now where did those wretched little girls get off to?"  
"There they are!" Shen Shen yelled, pointing to the section of the dungeon where the prisoners were being held.

Holly and Nessa were trying to wake up their mothers and Faye.

"It's not working," Holly said to Nessarose. "Do you know any spells that might wake them up?"

"Yeah!" Nessarose quickly said the spell for oil that she had used on her sister not so long ago, just as she and Holly were seized by Madame Morrible and Shen Shen.

Thankfully, the three captives began to stir.

"Oh my goodness," Lady Glinda began, sitting up, although bound by ropes. "Where am I?" She opened her eyes and screamed.

Faye and Elphaba snapped their eyes open. Elphaba tried to jump up into a defensive stance, but she was bound together by rope on her ankles and wrists, and fell down. A piece of tape over her mouth prevented her from saying a spell, but Elphaba grunted until Glinda recovered from her shock and looked at her.

"Elphie?" Glinda said quietly. "I think if we put our backs together, we can untie each other."

Elphaba nodded, and the two women sat back-to-back, untying the knots binding their wrists together. Once they shook the ropes loose, they untied the ropes on their ankles, and Glinda took the tape off Elphaba's mouth slowly but noiselessly.

"Mmmm-MMM!" Lady Glinda and Elphaba both turned to look at Faye, who also had tape over her mouth.

"Oh! Sorry honey!" Elphaba whispered. She untied Faye's wrists and removed the tape from her mouth while Glinda untied the girl's ankles.

Shen Shen and Madame Morrible were dragging Holly and Nessa across the dungeon floor, trying to locate the rope Shen Shen had brought in with her.

"I know I had it!" Shen Shen exclaimed, while Nessa was viciously struggling and trying to bite her. "Maybe I left it outside? OUCH!" Nessa had succeeded in chomping down on Shen Shen's thumb, and broke loose, running into the depths of the dungeon where her mom and sister were.

"Mom, it's me- Nessa!"

"Nessarose, what happened to you? You don't look anything like yourself!" Elphaba said, hugging the girl.

"It's a long story…"

* * *

"That's it!" Madame Morrible bellowed. "Boq! We must begin now? Boq?!"

Boq broke away from his laugh session with Liir and turned to look at her.

"We must begin now!"

"Right-o!" Boq left Liir and ran over to a book resting on a podium near the large, comfortable chair. Madame Morrible threw Holly onto the ground and went over to join him.

Liir ran over to help Holly up, and Madame Morrible cleared her throat.

"WHEEEEEE!" The dungeon door flew open as Chistery came swinging in on a rope, released it, performed a somersault in the air, and landed among the rafters.

"Chistery!" Elphaba shouted.

"Hello, Miss Elph-ba. I come to tell you that Baby Glinda drink fifteen glasses champagne and Fiyero jump out tower window."

Elphaba looked stricken.

"No worry. Is okay- we restuff him." Chistery looked proud of himself. "He come soon."

"AHH-AHAHAH-AAAA!" At that moment, Fiyero came swinging in on the rope. But unlike Chistery, he did not let go.

"Fiyero!" Elphaba shouted. "Look out for that!—wall." Fiyero slid down the square stone pillar dividing the room.

"I am okay!" he announced, standing up dizzily.

"Where's baby Glinda?" Elphaba asked. "You did _not_ leave her home alone did you?"

On cue, the tiny blonde came running into the room. "I'm here!" She shouted, running all the way back to her mom, who took her in her arms.

"Madame!" Boq shouted, coming back to his senses. "The spell!"

Madame Morrible began to chant.

* * *


	15. Dragons and Teacups and Lemurs, Oh my!

**A/N: Here is the wonderfully revised Chapter 15!**

**Disclaimer: Inspiration for the powers partly came from the live-action Scooby-Doo movie. And the spell on Madame Morrible is like petrificus totalus from Harry Potter. **

* * *

As Madame Morrible chanted, a strange smell of burning incense became present, and a thick purple mist shrouded the room. No one could understand what the wicked woman was saying; the language was strange and unnatural. As Madame Morrible raised her arms at the conclusion of the spell, golden orbs materialized of the throats of all the other witches in the room—Elphaba, Glinda, Faye, Holly, and Nessarose. Holly's disguise spell fell apart immediately, and she, Nessarose, and Liir returned to their natural appearance. Madame Morrible gave a wicked grin, and held her arms out to the orbs, beckoning them to come to her. Everyone watched in horror, powerless to stop her.

The first of the orbs drifted by Baby Glinda, and she opened her mouth around it and closed. A faint golden glow emanated from a bulge in her right cheek. The occupants of the room seemed to snap out of their daze.

"Glinda, you spit that out right this minute!" Elphaba demanded, marching over to her. The little girl shook her head "No", her blonde curls bouncing. Elphaba squeezed the child's cheeks together until her lips pursed, and the orb popped out of her mouth. It ricocheted off the wall and hit Liir square in the chest.

"I feel weird…" He announced, just before transfroming into a dragon. The sudden displacement of air sent the remaining floating orbs bouncing off the walls and into people. an orb headed for holly, but she ducked and the golden sphere hit Shen Shen. The woman had been trying to capture Holly, but was now magically changed into a lemur. Another orb hit Chistery, transforming him into a teapot. Elphaba grabbed the falling china as it fell from the rafters, just before it hit the floor. A fourth power orb hit Fiyero, changing him into a tinman. And the last one hit Boq, turning him into a potted plant. As Holly drew closer to the plant, the golden orb zipped back out, transforming Boq back into a tinman, and went into Holly, knocking her off her feet.

Liir the dragon was lumbering around, occasionally shooting out flames. The large, comfortable chair was on fire, so Holly flicked out her training wand spoke a water spell, hoping it would work. The liquid issuing out of the end of the wand confirmed her belief that her power was back.

Madame Morrible was trying to make a break for the door, but Elphaba sprinted toward the exit, determined to reach it first. As she ran, Elphaba passed over the dragon's tail, and her power came back to her. Liir shrank back to size. "That was awesome!" he proclaimed.

The two tinmen were arguing in the left side of the dungeon, and Glinda approached them, in search of her power.

"Fiyero, I need you to come with me!" Both tinmen stepped forward.

"I'm Fiyero," the left one said.

"No, _I'm_ Fiyero!" declared the tinman on the right.

"I don't have time for this!" Glinda cried. "I need my power back! She reached forward and placed her hands on both of them, but nothing happened.

"Ah! Neither of you have it!" Glinda straightened her tiara and marched off, determined to find her power and prevent Boq and Madame Morrible from getting away with their plan. And Shen Shen…that was certainly a surprise, but Glinda didn't have time to consider that thought at the present moment.

Meanwhile, the twin tinmen's bickering continued.

"Stop pretending to be me!" The right tinman cried.

"Oh, come off it! We both know that _I'm_ the true Fiyero!"

"Fiyero would never say, "Come off it!'"

"Well, you just referred to Fiyero in third person! If you actually were Fiyero, then you would say 'I' instead of 'Fiyero'!"

"Well, then I'm certainly Fiyero because I have no clue what you're talking about! It's just you and me here, there _is_ no third person!"

Madame Morrible looked up to face Elphaba. Everything was fair game; both witches had their powers coursing through them, ready to erupt into powerful spells and curses. Madame Morrible conjured up a horrible thunder and lighting storm, right in dungeon. The ceiling seemed to have disappeared, and rain started pouring down. Elphaba didn't know that was even possible. Madame Morrible's powers must have become stronger during the time she was at Southstairs. She now not only had the power to control the weather, but also to create it!

Elphaba felt the large, heavy raindrops continually pelting the top of her head and all over her skin. Something needed to be done fast. She raised her hands, summoned all of her magic, and sent a curse directly at Morrible. The evil woman's limbs snapped straight together against her body, and she fell over with a large THUMP!, lying still on the cold dungeon floor.

Elphaba picked up the nearby Chistery teapot from the ground and checked it over, gladly discovering that it had not been harmed. Nessarose ran over and gave her mother a hug. As Elphaba wrapped both hands around her daughter, holding in her right the teapot, Chistery reappeared. Nessa felt her power's return immediately. She noticed that her mother's skin was beginning to become filled with raised, red bumps, and her green comeplexion looked paler and sickly. Nessa knew the same thing must be happening to Faye, and as she looked back at her sister, she saw Holly realizing the same thing.

Holly and Nessa joined hands, with Holly's left hand wrapped around her training wand, and Nessa's right hand up, prepared to cast a spell. Speaking in unison, the two young sorceresses recited a spell for sunshine and fair weather. The combined power of the two young witches dissipated the rainstorm , thankfully without Elphaba or Faye having too much of a reaction. Elphaba picked up baby Glinda, who was complaining about her clothes being wet.

"Thank goodness!" cried Glinda. "Now if only someone could deal with those two tinmen over there, before they both rust."

"I can!" Faye and Nessarose shouted at the same time. They raced over to the bickering tinmen, who seemed a little stiff, but not rusty. Faye was pleased to discover that one of them held her power, which came zooming back to her. Feeling energized by its return, Faye zapped the remaining tinman, Boq, into a frozen position.

Nessa, Faye, and their father gladly left the statuesque tinman behind. The trio headed back toward the group congregating in the middle of the dungeon, around the charred remains of the large comfortable chair.

A ring-tailed lemur dashed across the center of the floor, allowing Glinda to receive her power back, and the primate to return to its original form of Shen Shen.

A three-way spell from Faye, Glinda, and Elphaba froze the blonde woman just as she was about to make her escape.

"Now," said Fiyero, thankful to be returned back to his scarecrow form. "What are we going to do with all these frozen villains? I personally think they would make wonderful additions to the palace garden's assortment of statues..."

**A/N: I think in the musical, ****Elphaba is not actually allergic to water, but for the purposes of this fanfic she is. I'm not sure how she reacts to water in the book, so I just made something up. It's really not that important for the purposes of this story. **


	16. Wonderful

**Disclaimer: I don't own **_**Wicked**_** or **_**The Wizard of Oz**_**. Also, references to Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, and Dr. Phil. **

**A/N: Wow! Final chapter—I can barely believe it! Please review and tell me what you think! **

**Be sure to check out the revised chapters 14 &15! I made a few minor changes. And in this chapter, it's been a couple of months since the battle in the dungeon. **

**Btw, hippopotomonstrosesquipedalian refers to long words, and here are the definitions for strawman from the dictionary:**

**1. A person used as a cover for some questionable activity **

**2. A weak or sham argument set up to be easily refuted**

**3. An effigy in the shape of a man to frighten birds away from seeds**

* * *

"Oh, what a celebration we'll have today!" cried Holly, in reference to the parade and festivities about to begin in downtown Emerald City. Lady Glinda had arranged for the celebration in honor of Madame Morrible's return to Southstairs in the high security division, as well as Boq's admittance into it. Shen Shen was in villain rehab, as Lady Glinda and the assembly had deemed her incapable of committing an evil act on her own.

Shen Shen was actually becoming quite the celebrity, and had appeared on many popular Ozian talk shows, including Soaprah, Kellan DiGenerous, and Dr. Phyllis. By getting her story out there, Shen Shen was able to establish the Argent for Aysel Foundation, and had raised an incredible amount of funds for Aysel and other children with learning disabilities. The plans for another specialized school located in the Emerald City were being finalized, so Aysel would be able to come home and see her mom everyday. In addition, an art dealer had shown an interest in Shen Shen's work. She had retired from her teaching job and become a full-time artist. Her abstract paintings of nature had become all the rage with upper-class Ozians.

"I don't know," Nessarose said, peering out the large glass window in the castle library, where all the kids had congregated before the parade. "I'm still not sure if I'm going to go. I don't want to get any weird stares from people. It's not easy being green, you know." She sighed heavily.

"Nessa, it's going to be okay. We're all going to get weird stares!" Faye said, referring to the Tiggular family. She pulled Nessa into a hug. Then, with both hands on her sister's shoulders, Faye addressed Nessa again. "We are Tiggulars. We don't care what anyone else thinks."

Nessa smiled, but was distracted as a large crashing noise came from the back of the library. All four children raced to check on baby Glinda. The last row of ten bookshelves had fallen over, one on top of the other like dominoes. Baby Glinda was standing on the edge of the mess, with a confused look on her face.

"Glinda!" Liir exclaimed, scooping up his baby sister. "What happened?"

"I don't know. I just got really mad because I couldn't reach the book on hippopotomonstrosesquipedalians, and then suddenly all the bookshelves fell down!" The little girl looked up with big eyes, worried that she would be punished. "Aww, Glinda," Faye began, ruffling her sister's hair. "It just means your powers have come in! I remember when I got mine. I was angry at mom for not letting me play outside in the rain, and lighting struck the house and all the lights went out!" "Yeah," Nessa joined in. "For me, I got my powers when Liir was teasing me about not being able to touch the ceiling when we were jumping on the bed. It seems so stupid now," she blushed, "but back then it made me so furious. The next thing I knew, he was halfway submerged in the ceiling!" "I remember that!" Liir chuckled. "I was stuck up there half the day before you finally went and got mom!" "What about you Holly," Faye asked, turning to her friend. "When did you get your powers?" Holly's face turned the shade of her strapless red gown. "I, uh, I didn't 'get' my powers. I kinda just had to learn magic, you know? And sometimes my spells really don't work all that well." "Oh," said Faye, sorry for bringing up the topic and embarrassing Holly. "Well let's go downstairs and get ready for the festival."

"You guys go ahead," Nessa encouraged. "I'll meet up with you later." She began the trek to the south wing of the palace, where the Tiggular family had been living during their stay in the city. Nessa swung open the sturdy oak door to her bedroom, taking in her surroundings. The room was quite large, and she didn't have to share it with her younger sister. There were plenty of spare rooms back at Kiamo Ko, but Nessa and Glinda had always shared a room ever since they were little, and Glinda had never moved out. Nessa hadn't noticed before, but she enjoyed the younger girl's company. The bedroom seemed empty and lifeless without pink tutus and stuffed animals strewn across the floor. Nessa walked over to a plush armchair by the window overlooking the south gardens, and began to think.

With the help of Glinda, and some reluctant confessions from Madame Morrible and Boq, Elphaba had been officially pardoned and the real story had come out. While most saw the truth for what it was, it was taking many older Ozians some getting used to. The dungeons were beginning to become populated again as the violent protesters waited out their ten day punishment periods.

While Elphaba had turned down magazine interview opportunities and any other forms of publicity, Fiyero had decided to write a book. _My Life as a Strawman _was already climbing to the top of the best seller list. He was going to be on a float in the parade, along with the author of _Liquid Poultry: The Best Thing Since Canned Bread._

With Boq and Madame Morrible in prison, the family name restored, and a new friendship with the Uplands, Nessarose supposed there was nothing left to do but enjoy the day. Just because she was green didn't mean she wasn't equal to everyone else. Letting someone else's prejudices bring you down wasn't the right way to act, and neither was hiding away in the castle. Nessarose stood up and looked at herself in the vanity. She smoothed her hair and straightened her skirt. Looking at her reflection, Nessa saw a typical eleven-year-old girl. She walked out of her bedroom, across the winding corridors of the south wing, and down the central marble staircase, meeting her siblings and Holly waiting for her in the foyer. Linking arms, they skipped down the pathway toward the festival, singing a classic children's song.

_Follow the Yellow Brick Road__! Follow the Yellow Brick Road!  
Follow, follow, follow, follow,  
Follow the Yellow Brick Road!  
Follow the Yellow Brick, Follow the Yellow Brick,  
Follow the Yellow Brick Road!_

_We're off to see The Wizard, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz! _

_We hear he is a whiz of a Wiz, if ever a Wiz there was!  
If ever, oh ever, a Wiz there was, The Wizard of Oz is one because,  
Because, because, because, because, because  
Because of the wonderful things he does!__  
We're off to see The Wizard, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!_


End file.
